Time After Time
by Midnight Scarlet
Summary: Yaoi JouSeto, AU Jou is a Saxon healer with the gift of Second Sight. Seto is a Norman warrior. When these two meet they are sworn enemies. But with a little help from fate, could all that change...? CHAPTER 5 UP
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN YU-GI-OH!  
  
Mid-S: BIG THANKS TO ~*MACARONI GIRL*~ FOR TELLING ME HOW TO UPDATE WITHOUT GETTING THOSE SQUIGGLY LINES! *blows kisses and gives her a Yu-Gi-Oh! Seto Kaiba plushie*  
  
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"Oh crystal burning bright, show me the way, show me the light. Tell me of a time that is not time, of a day that is not day."  
  
In the tower of Oaken Arvin, these ancient words echoed on the cold walls.  
  
A single candle was lit; it's flame growing stronger with each word. At her perch at the corner of the room, an eagle watched it, it's jade eyes alert for any unusual movement.  
  
Jounouchi Katsuya leaned over the candle, the light reflecting his pale skin. Thick black lashes fell over his eyes as he kept repeating the words, over and over again. His golden blonde hair fell slightly over his face, and tickled his forehead but he ignored it.  
  
Patterns of green and gold shone off the walls, reflecting the long diamond shaped crystal he held over the flame. The colors made the wall seem as if there were glittering jewels made into the walls, instead of them being made of crumbling stone.  
  
Then suddenly, the lights stopped. They flew up to the ceiling and disappeared all together. The candle's flame disappeared also, but into the green crystal.  
  
"Show me what I wish to see." Jou whispered.  
  
The crystal started to spin slowly and it seemed to breathe with each word that was spoken. One thousand years had passed since there had last been a vision in the crystal.  
  
Jou slowly opened his eyes, afraid of what he might see. The crystal hardly ever gave good news and everyone knew it. What he saw was not what he had expected. It was worse then he had expected. He saw armies running into battle; people dying or wounded; children crying by their families.  
  
His heart ached but he couldn't look away from the crystal. Once there was a vision, he had to see it all, be it good or bad. That was the curse of this gift.  
  
He saw a large snake swallow the Saxon stag and knew that King Bakura's army would fall before Yami the Conquerors would. He knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. This was the future and nothing that he tried could stop it.  
  
Tears of pain and sorrow fell down his cheeks. He wanted to shut his eyes and turn his head to look away. But he couldn't. Something kept telling him he must look at the crystal, he must know what would happen next. Why, he wanted to yell out, why must I know the future when I can do nothing to stop it?  
  
But no answer came. It never did.  
  
Watching the jade colored crystal, he knew that the fate of his people rested in his hands. He would have to protect them...somehow.  
  
As the vision of death and destruction slowly burned away, a new vision reached out to him. A huge creature came out of the ashes of blood and war. It was a silver, black and red jaguar.  
  
Jou gasped as more of the creature showed itself. There was blood on its mouth and on its two front paws. Its fierce crimson eyes stared into Jounouchi's, as if knowing that he was watching.  
  
It said to him:  
  
"Beware of the one whose eyes are like ice and who has no mercy."  
  
The jaguar changed into human shape and Jou felt two emotions he had never felt before. Lust and desire.  
  
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Mid-S: Well, how was it?  
  
Bakura: Terrible, as usual.  
  
Mid-S: *glares* You really wanna die don't you? Anywho, read and review people! I'll give you your choice of any Yu-Gi-Oh guy you want to date and I'll post the 'winners' in the next chapter! Ja ne!  
  
"Soldiers!"  
  
The cry rang out through the winter air and was heard in the Oaken Arvin tower.  
  
At her perch, the jade-eyed falcon flapped her wings and her cries joined the ones outside. The dog, Thomas, who had been sleeping, jumped up in alarm and hid under the wooden table.  
  
Beware Jounouchi!  
  
The words where heard in the herbal, bouncing off the stone walls. Even the bubble of the potions could not drown out the warning.  
  
Jou looked up and hurried over to the small window on the west wall. He saw Peter, the smithy's son from the village, in the yard below. 


	2. The Norman Army

AFTER TASTE OF A RAZORBLADE: ^__^ Thankies SO much for the sweet review! No one has ever called anything I've done 'sheer brilliance'! *gives her a Seto/Jou doujinshi* Enjoy! ^_~  
  
JADE-J.: No I'm not using a code. It just seems that if I don't put this in HTML format, it will give me squiggly lines. Thanks for saying that my story has a good beginning though! ^_^  
  
ANGEL 13: Aw, that's so sweet! ^O^ Don't worry, I won't be listening to Bakura anymore.  
  
DRAGON_LOVER_RYUSHI: Does this answer your question? ^_~ LOL! Anywho, thanks for the review!  
  
MACARONI GIRL: I owe you big time! Thanks SO much for telling me how to get rid of those lines, it was really nice of you! *glomps her* ^_____^  
  
FREAK & JEWELCRYER: I'm sorry that you got confused in the end. I'd like to help, but I'm not sure what you're confused about. ^^; If you tell me which part you don't get, I'll be glad to help clear it up.  
  
ESCACHICK: Since you're the only one who wanted a Yu-Gi-Oh! guy, you can have them all! *gives her the whole cast* But to be fair, I'll give Seto to you so you can date him. ^_~  
  
Jou: Oh yeah, over my dead body! *glares*  
  
Mid-S: ^^; Come on Jou, lighten up! It's only for the weekend and besides, Esca-Chan deserves him.  
  
Jou: So you're saying I don't.  
  
Mid-S: -_- Listen, I'll write a lemon between you and Seto if you shut up.  
  
Jou: Okay! ^_^  
  
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"Soldiers!"  
  
The cry rang out through the winter air and was heard in the Oaken Arvin tower.  
  
At her perch, the jade-eyed falcon flapped her wings and her cries joined the ones outside. The dog, Thomas, who had been sleeping, jumped up in alarm and hid under the wooden table.  
  
Beware Jounouchi!  
  
The words where heard in the herbal, bouncing off the stone walls. Even the bubble of the potions could not drown out the warning.  
  
Jou looked up and hurried over to the small window on the west wall. He saw Peter, the smithy's son from the village, in the yard below.  
  
He was running fast, though Jou wasn't quite sure where. But he knew one thing. The people in the village would not last for long when the Normans appeared.  
  
Just as he thought that, he saw them. The soldiers where off in the distance, but not too far. They're armor was a midnight black and on they're flag there was a deadly green serpent that seemed to smile mockingly at him.  
  
A terrible fear seized Jou. Ever since the day that he saw the vision in the jade crystal, the people of the village Naigai had been waiting for dread. And now, as the soldiers drew closer, one thing raced in his mind.  
  
England is doomed.  
  
Peter had already warned the villagers, so his main worry was for his sister, Serenity (1), and his guardian, the feisty Shadi (2). They may have not heard the warning.  
  
That morning, he and Serenity had gone outside to pick some flowers and just relax, though what they where really supposed to be doing was getting some different leaves for the healing potions Jou was to make. They had jumped to it when Shadi had caught them, and hurried to get the leaves.  
  
Shadi had spent most of the afternoon in the herbal with him. He said he found it relaxing to sit in the herbal, looking out through the broken piece of roof to the sky above. Several of his followers had left him and the village to ruin a few years ago. They all knew the day would come when Yami the Conqueror would take over England. They didn't have the guts to stay.  
  
Jou's guardian loved to study the sky, whether it was day or night. Jounouchi admired, respected and loved Shadi. He was like the father he never had.  
  
Snapping back to reality, Jou remembered where he was. As if sensing his fear and distress, the jade crystal glowed powerfully around his neck. 'I must warn them,' he thought. 'I simply must.'  
  
He felt the fear grow stronger and he hastened his pace. He hoped he wasn't too late. Closing his eyes (but still walking) he prayed, 'let them be safe, please'. Not missing a beat, he started running down the long dark corridor, the only light source was his jade crystal. But he knew the corridors well, since Serenity and he had been living in Oaken Arvin since they where babies.  
  
They (Serenity and he) had been travelers with their mother, coming from some place he could not remember, on the night the worst storm that the people in Naigai could ever recall. Shadi had taken them in and when the winter ended, they remained there. They're mother had left them there, kissing their cheeks and crying, telling them she wouldn't be returning. What surprised Jou was that he had only been three and his sister was about 5 months. He couldn't believe he still remembered that far back.  
  
He never knew why his mother had left his sister and him. She never left any reason.  
  
As Serenity and he grew, he learned the ancient healing ways from Shadi and spent the afternoon with his guardian, learning astrology, mathematics, languages, old myths and riddles and anything else that Shadi had learned on his trips to other European states.  
  
His little sister had also learned how to heal, but for some reason, he was considered more important to learn this then she was. Serenity only learned French and Italian but that was it. It had always saddened him that he would know more then her. But there was nothing he could do to change that. He was after all, a man and she was a woman. Men had more rights then woman and that's the way it would always be. (3)  
  
Life had been simple in Naigai. They weren't a rich village, but they got by all right. Well that was until the monks had left.  
  
The village had fallen into ruin and the villagers there where simple folk. They didn't know how to rebuild houses and important things like that. Naigai had been ruined.  
  
The only person who was well educated and stayed with them was Shadi.  
  
'But why,' Jou wondered frantically as he ran down the narrow steps, leading into the chapel on the main floor, 'are the Norman's here now? What could they possibly want with us?'  
  
Beware Jounouchi!  
  
The same warning echoed on the walls.  
  
He jumped off the last stair and landed on the chapel floor, he saw Shadi running over to him. The man's normally cheerful face was pale with fear and his dark eyes wide.  
  
"Peter." Jou started, starting to explain why he had run. Shadi held up his hand.  
  
"Yes, the Norman's are coming Jounouchi. Just as you have foreseen and we have dreaded." There was no surprise in Shadi's voice. He (and all the villagers) had learned long ago that it was wise to trust Jou's visions.  
  
"King Bakura's army has fallen." he continued, looking heavily saddened, "It's a terrible time for England."  
  
"Serenity?" Jou asked, the fear for his sister clearly in his voice.  
  
"I'm right here brother," she said, stepping from behind a wall. Jou breathed a sigh of relief and ran to embrace her.  
  
"Darling sister." he muttered. Serenity tore out of his arms suddenly.  
  
"You must flee Jou! You have to get out of here!" she said urgently, trying to stop the tears that threatened to fall.  
  
"Yes, you must go." Shadi added his voice to hers, his voice more demanding then Jou had ever heard it before.  
  
"I will not leave!" he said, but seeing the look pass between them, he knew it had already been decided.  
  
"Dear child," Shadi began, smiling slightly. "The days that are coming will be dark for all of the Saxons. And you know that you must *not* fall into Norman hands! Now go, before it is too late!"  
  
But it was already too late.  
  
The oak doors that barely kept the cold out, burst open with such a force, that they slammed against the stone walls.  
  
The candles that where lit, burned out with the sudden gust of cold wind. Serenity grabbed her brother's arm and pulled him behind the huge altar.  
  
"Don't say anything." she said in a harsh voice, but Jou could sense the fear in her words.  
  
Shadi stayed where he was. He scrunched up his shoulders to look older. He found a long piece of wood on the floor and used it to look like a walking stick. He took a large cross that he kept hidden in his shirt and put it right over his heart, for everyone to see. His face was filled with fake surprise (though it looked real enough to the soldiers). But as he gripped hard on the 'walking stick', Jou's heart almost stopped with fear. He knew the dangerous game his guardian played.  
  
Jou knew he could escape from Serenity's grip easily, but he heard another voice in his head that added to his sister's:  
  
Don't do it! All is at stake!  
  
"Move out of my way!" a voice commanded harshly. The soldiers at the front parted and in between them came a man with black hair and cold green eyes ((Mid-S: Guess who. ^_~)). He stared at Shadi, as if trying to figure out what he was up to.  
  
"It wasn't necessary to brake down the doors," Shadi said frowning. "What is the meaning of this? Why do you bring weapons into the house of God?"  
  
"This is now Yami of Normandy's house," the black haired soldier said, smirking at his next sentence. "As is all of England."  
  
He was dressed in heavy chain main and black tunic, with stains all over the armor. Jou's heart jumped when he realized those stains where blood.  
  
"We have come for the healer whose reputation is well known," the Norman said, his hand lying on the handle of the sword attached to his belt.  
  
Shadi's look was of mild surprise but he shrugged and Jou was surprised at how easily the next lie fell from his lips.  
  
"There is no healer here, my lord. Only me, a humble monk."  
  
The soldier glared, his eyes narrowing dangerously.  
  
"A Saxon man told us that the healer is here. He was quite certain of it, because his wife had brought a potion to heal him from burns, and said that this is where she got it. According to him, the healer's talents are well known. "  
  
Again, Shadi shrugged. "He must have been mistaken. Naigai is far too poor to have someone of such great reputation."  
  
"The man's hand had been badly cut, yet it was almost healed when I saw him," the Norman then smirked evilly. "He told me this right before he died under my blade."  
  
Jou gasped. That had been Peter's father! The man had come to him for a healing potion the day before. Sensing his anger and deep sadness, Serenity gripped his arm tighter.  
  
"There is nothing you can do about it Jouno." she whispered quietly.  
  
But Shadi didn't give up, pretending he knew no man that had come there with a hurt hand.  
  
"The man must have been mistaken. There is no healer in Oaken Arvin."  
  
The green eyed Norman scowled. "Search the chapel! Bring me the healer!" he commanded his men.  
  
Shadi wobbled over to them, as if trying to block their way.  
  
"I must protest! You can not bring your bloodied weapons into the Sacred House."  
  
The Norman drew his sword and pointed it at Shadi's chest. His eyes narrowed dangerously.  
  
"Stop your pathetic whining old man, or I'll drop you where you stand."  
  
Jou tried to get out of Serenity's grasp but she wouldn't let him go. "Stop it, brother! You've heard the Voice. You mustn't let these Norman pigs find you!" She said in a harsh whisper. Tears started out of her eyes, and Jou could sense her fear and worry for him. He sighed. She was right, but he wished she hadn't been.  
  
The soldiers moved quickly through the building. They broke chairs and tables with axes, spilled Shadi's favourite wine, took the lunch that was on the table - brown bread, cheese and fruit - and stuffed it into their mouths. They took Shadi's favourite books and journals and threw them into the fire. His star charts and math books got torn apart.  
  
Jou's throat ached with the fight to stop the tears and knew all this was happening because of him. His hands clutched into tight fists of helpless rage, as Serenity (who was crying silent tears) whispered to him more warnings. If he had a sword, he would have gladly used it on the Norman's, not caring about the blood that would be spilt.  
  
"Please," begged Shadi. "These books are of no importance to you. Don't destroy them."  
  
"You're right monk," the Norman said. "they are of no importance to me. Of course, you can save your precious books by telling me where the healer is!" With these words, the rest of the men returned to searching the chapel.  
  
Even though Shadi knew it would only be a matter of time before Jou and Serenity where found, he kept on playing the game. "I do not know any healer. Surely Yami the Conqueror would not break into a chapel."  
  
"I can not bare this anymore!" Jou whispered to his sister, "I can't take other's suffering because of me."  
  
"You must bare it!" Serenity whispered back. "Shadi has always told us to be strong! Now both of us must be stronger then we ever have been."  
  
Tears started pouring out of his eyes. How could he be strong when the Normans' were threatening his guardian?! He felt his pocket and there was the knife he had used that morning to cut some herbs.  
  
Shadi, taking his 'walking stick' and using it as a sort of weapon, he pretended to hobble over to them.  
  
"This is sacred ground!" he roared. "Stop your evil ways now, or be damned to hell for all eternity!"  
  
"Otogi." one of the soldiers spoke, looking at the black haired man. Sensing his men's uneasiness, he swore.  
  
"Curse you, old fool!" he cried and hit Shadi on the side of his head, with the sword. As Shadi struggled to get up, Otogi's eyes filled with grim satisfaction, as he raised his sword to strike again.  
  
"Stop!" Jou cried out, braking away from Serenity's grip and running from behind the altar.  
  
Serenity's heart filled with grief, as she knew she had failed to protect her older brother. 'But maybe', she thought quickly, 'there is still a way to trick these simple minded fools.'  
  
"I am the healer you seek." she said, stepping out from behind the altar and slowly walking towards them.  
  
"NO!" Jou cried out as Serenity was immediately seized by the Normans and pushed to the ground.  
  
Otogi picked her up by the throat, his emerald eyes looking her over. He shook his head and flung her to the ground.  
  
"It's not her!" he cried angrily, "She's too young to be a healer." She slowly lifted her head to face Jou, her eyes now puffy with tears cried and more coming down.  
  
"Ha correto il fratello caro. Te stesso risparmiare." (4)  
  
With that said, Serenity flung herself at Otogi with amazing agility. Unfortunately, the other soldiers got to her first and threw her against the wall. She fell to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"How *dare* you touch her!" Jou cried and, taking out the gardening knife, he lunged at Otogi's throat.  
  
Hearing the warning from one of his men, Otogi blocked his throat with his hand. Instead of killing him, Jou had only managed to cut his cheek. Otogi cried out like a wounded animal.  
  
"Saxon bastard!" he snarled, putting his hand over his cheek. He raised his fist and hit Jou on the shoulder. Then he pulled Jou against him, digging his hands into his blonde hair.  
  
"There are other ways to tame a cat with sharp claws." he said, smirking evilly. Jou knew what he meant by that and though it frightened him greatly, he refused to cower.  
  
"I will show this blood thirsty Saxon who his master is," Otogi vowed, taking his sword and pressing it against Jou's throat. "Do you understand me?"  
  
"Je vous comprends (5)," Jounouchi answered in perfect, flawless French, enjoying the stunned look on Otogi's face. "But do you understand me?"  
  
Otogi's eyes narrowed at him, but Jou continued.  
  
"Pray for forgiveness, Otogi. For I vow, by the ancient powers, you're already dead for what you have done."  
  
All the soldiers started laughing. "Tell me Saxon, how am I already dead? Am I some ghost that is holding you prisoner?" he laughed even harder. "Tell me, if I am dead, how is it that I hold this blade against *your* lovely neck?"  
  
Jou recoiled with disgust, inside the threat of the knife against his throat and outside trying not to show any fear to this horrible brute.  
  
"Please, don't harm him! He is just a foolish child, he doesn't know better," Shadi said, finally getting to a standing position. "He only sought to save the girl that is his sister."  
  
But Otogi seemed not to hear, for he pressed the sword even harder against Jou's flesh.  
  
Suddenly, another party of Norman soldiers burst through the already open chapel doors.  
  
"Stop at once Otogi or die!"  
  
Otogi's face was filled with utter disbelief and then anger. He dragged Jou with him, to stand in front of the man who had called out to him.  
  
"Seto Kaiba, you black hearted son of a bitch!" He snarled. Jou turned to look at the said boy and had to hold in a gasp.  
  
He was tall, with chestnut brown hair and ice blue eyes. Jounouchi felt like he had seen him before, like they had some how met.  
  
The blonde couldn't help but think how attractive he was...realizing what he had just thought, Jou shivered inwardly with disgust at himself. How could he even begin to think that about a *Norman*?  
  
Then he realized why he thought they had met before. It was the man from his vision! The crystal had told him to beware of 'the one whose eyes are like ice and has no mercy'.  
  
He felt the same desire he had felt before. Why did this boy have such an effect on him?  
  
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(1): I want to use her dub name because I like it better. Sorry. ^^;  
  
(2): I think Shadi would be a perfect guardian for Jou, don't you? Besides, I needed someone to take care of Serenity and he.  
  
(3): A glimpse inside the male mind.  
  
(4): It simply means 'Run dear brother. Save yourself.' in Italian.  
  
(5): 'I understand.' in French (even though you probably know that already). ^^;  
  
Mid-S: Um, was that okay? OO; Sorry to all those Otogi fans, please don't take it too personally.  
  
I'm not sure if you guys will like it. I'm personally not too impressed...It was horrible wasn't it? T_T  
  
YMS: Oh come on, it isn't bad!  
  
Otogi: You're right. It's worse then bad. It's crap. *laughs*  
  
Mid-S: *blinks* WAAAAAAAA! T_T *sobs*  
  
YMS: *hits him over the head* Shut up a-hole. _ 


	3. Into the Unknown Future

Mid-S: HIYA! ^__^ Wow, I can't believe I've gotten so many reviews already! O_O I LOVE YOU ALL! ^O^ Sorry about the long wait for the chapter, but it's been tough to write so much in a short amount of time. Anywho, here's some review comments:  
  
SILVER DRAGON SOVEREIGN I: Glad you like the plushie and the fic. ^_~ I do what I can to make people happy. ^_^ *gives her a bag of lollypops* Thankies for the review!  
  
RU-CHAN: Hey, thanks for correcting me on that one. ^__^ It's always good to know what I need to change. Here *hands her a box of chocolate* Thanks for having the guts to tell me what I did wrong. ^_~  
  
SHADOW CAT: This story has a plot? O_O LOL! ^_~ Thanks for the sweet review hun. *glomps her and gives her a picture of Seto and Jou*  
  
HUSH PUPPY 1: Nice new name Blade-Chan, I like it! ^_^ It reminds me of my shoes. LOL. You know I'm just joking. You're right, I should stop listening to those idiots. *tackle glomps her and gives her a Yu-Gi-Oh! Subtitled DVD set* Enjoy darlin'! ^__^  
  
ESCACHICK: Good to know that Seto was a gentleman. I'm glad he was nice to you, because if he wasn't, he wouldn't be pretty no more. ^_~ Thankies for the sweet review hun! *tackle glomps her and gives her a Anzu Voodoo doll* For all your killing needs. LOL.  
  
Otogi: I hate all of these goddamn reviewers! Especially Hush Puppy 1 and Escachick. BITCHES!  
  
Anzu and Honda: YEAH!  
  
Mid-S: *gasps* You DARE insult H-Chan and Chel-Chel? *gets out axe* You insult them, you're insulting me and NO ONE INSULTS *ANY* OF MY REVIEWERS AND LIVES, YOU GOT THAT?  
  
O, A and H: *gulp and run away*  
  
Mid-S: Hmph, bastards. Sorry you two, I'll go give them a piece of my mind (or rather my axe ^_^) and make sure Otogi suffers in this chapter. *starts planning evilly* Have fun!  
  
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If fire could take human shape, it would be the beautiful boy standing in front of Seto Kaiba.  
  
His skin was lightly tanned, with messy golden blonde hair that slightly fell into his eyes. But that was what caught Seto's attention the most.  
  
They where the strangest color. Honey-brown and filled with so much emotion. Seto felt like he could stare at them forever.  
  
He had seen fire on many war camps, where good men who fought for just causes, died and the others who fought for greed and wealth lived. So when he thought of fire, he immediately thought of death.  
  
Until then, he had never thought of fire as being something pure and alive. This beautiful Saxon in front of him was alive with obvious pride, defiance and anger that he was sure if anyone touched her, they would surely be burned. Though it would be an exquisite torture.  
  
He found himself wanting to tangle his hands in the soft blonde hair, touch the boys pale skin and look into his honey eyes for the rest of time.  
  
Jou stared into the ice eyes of the black jaguar and shivered.  
  
Seto Kaiba was his enemy, a creature that had been born in fire and blood, in a vision that had not been seen for a thousand years. This man before him was death and destruction.  
  
And yet he couldn't look away, for he was looking at the unwritten future. It called to him; evil, unknown and challenging just like the knight in front of him, the man with the soul of darkness.  
  
"Curse you!" Otogi spat, glaring at Seto in full hatred. "I was sent to find the healer! What are you doing here?"  
  
Seto's expression became more predatory, and his eyes seemed to shoot poison at the black haired man. "I wanted to make sure you encountered no difficulty," He said, his gaze trailing over Jounouchi. "Release him."  
  
"The Saxon bastard came at me with a knife!" Otogi said, his grip tightening on the blonde. "I could have been killed."  
  
Seto said nothing, while his gaze traveled to Jou's neck, where Otogi's blade had drawn blood.  
  
"I can see the graze danger you where in," He said sarcastically and then repeated, "Release him."  
  
At his back, Jou felt Otogi stiffen slightly and tighten his grip on him even more. The blonde knew the green-eyed man had no intention of letting him go. Otogi shifted and pulled his sword away from Jou's neck, to point it at Seto. But before he could, the said boy's blade was at his throat. It was set right under Otogi's chin, pressing dangerously hard on the soft flesh. Otogi's eyes widened slightly and he paled. He cursed as all the color drained out of him. Jou felt him stiffen as the curse stopped abruptly. He saw the reason why as a ribbon of blood went down Seto Kaiba's blade.  
  
"Release him or die." He said with such a fierce calm that Jounouchi shuddered. Otogi suddenly stood very still.  
  
Jou sensed his fury, the battle inside him, and.the fear. Jou felt it too, for the blade that Kaiba held was close to his own cheek. If Seto lost control of the blade, it would surely cut him. But he didn't need to worry. The man was so controlled and cold that he was certain no heart beat within him. Maybe this wasn't the man in his vision, for at that moment, he was sure Kaiba was going to kill Otogi.  
  
"I have often thought," Seto told Otogi, "that the best solider is the one who has experienced both ends of the blade." The tip of the blade was pressing harder on the black haired one's neck.  
  
"The experience of one makes for a better understanding of the other. It is a wise man who understands this. It is a fool who does not." Smirking, Seto looked Otogi strait in the eye.  
  
"Tell me Otogi. Are you wise? Or are you a fool?" (1)  
  
Ever since Seto had become a knight, he knew what type of man Otogi was. He sold his knighthood to the highest bidder and Seto found it quite pathetic.  
  
His cause was far different. Kaiba was a bastard by birth and knighthood was his only resource. He had chosen knighthood as means of getting what he had been denied at birth-the duchy of Legai-which he had vowed to take-by blood if necessary-from the father he despised.  
  
Yami of Normandy and he shared many things-their bastard birth, their ambitions and war. They had first met in the battle against the Moors, who had hidden a chest of gold that was rightfully theirs.  
  
Seto had saved Yami's life that day. Yami's horse was cut under him and he had been pinned down. If it hadn't been for Seto, he would have died.  
  
When Yami asked how he could repay him, Seto calmly said by giving him half the gold. If it had been any other man Yami would have refused, but now with all of Seto's army protecting the left side of him, he thought it would be best if he handed over half instead of all the gold. It was still a discussion about who served whom. (2)  
  
But Otogi had no such ambitions as honor, power or wealth. Yami's brother, the bishop, paid him and he cared little for anything but the kill. Otogi was a bloodthirsty man and Seto knew it.  
  
Above the tip of Kaiba's sword, Otogi's face was filled with rage. He cursed but the sword pressed harder on his flesh as more blood dripped down the sword. Finally Otogi lowered his own sword and Jou felt the grip in his hair ease. He quickly stepped away from him. Seto nodded. "It is a wise man who knows his limitations. So now you know how it feels to have your flesh cut open and bleeding freely. (3)" To prove his point he turned the sword effortlessly in his hand and put a half circle under Otogi's chin.  
  
"So you know how it feels." Seto told him, smirking.  
  
Otogi's breath hissed through his teeth. He was pale again, this time from pain. He swore again, his breath wheezing in and out.  
  
"This will not be forgotten!" he promised as his terrified gaze remained on the long blade that held his own blood. His fear penetrated the air.  
  
"Curse you to the fires of hell Seto Kaiba!"  
  
Seto only shrugged, his arm moving easily beneath the armor. "Many people have wished for that already," Then in that same unemotional voice, that seemed to put an even greater threat to the words, he told Otogi. "Put down your sword or I will be forced to kill you."  
  
Otogi hesitated. Then slowly, one by one, his fingers uncurled from the handle of the sword. His emerald eyes showed no surrender, but instead a cold, dark light glowed in them and Jou wasn't sure which man was more dangerous.  
  
"Why are you even here?!" Otogi hissed at Kaiba, "I was sent to find the healer. There is no need for you and that cursed barbarian to be here."  
  
There was a slight movement and out came a solider with a slightly curved knife. He stood closer to Kaiba. Seto only nodded his head slightly as if he sensed the other man's movement.  
  
The warrior had no armor on, but seemed deadly enough. He had dirty blonde hair, slightly darker then Jou's own. His skin was tanned and his eyes a mystical purple. You could never know what he was thinking. His mouth was curved into a slight frown, perhaps in annoyance to Otogi. On his right arm, there was a thick gold bracelet with an ancient encryption. He held the blade in the same hand and seemed to dare Otogi to come near.  
  
Jou watched him in stunned fascination, for he reminded him of Shadi's stories about the dark-eyed Ancient Egyptians. The only thing different was that this man's eyes where violet.  
  
A second man stepped to Seto's left, as if showing that he was of great importance also. The second warrior took off his helmet to revile pure silver/white hair. His eyes where a warm brown and he seemed to look pityingly on Otogi.  
  
Jou noticed that he was younger then Kaiba, if only by a few years and he reminded him of their king Bakura. But the Saxon king was dead thanks to Yami the Conqueror. A deep feeling of hatred for the Norman's reappeared in his stomach.  
  
"Would you like me to separate the head of the bishop's dog from his shoulders?" The violet-eyed warrior asked, his voice showing that it would be a great pleasure too.  
  
Otogi ignored him, turning to the younger boy. "So, you've brought the young bastard with you also?" he sneered at him. "I didn't know we needed the *royal* presence to get a healer from the Saxon country side."  
  
Jou watched in curiosity as the seemingly innocent white-haired boy's eyes narrowed and he made a move to strike Otogi with his sword. He would have struck him down had Seto not interfered.  
  
"It's not worth it Ryou," He told him, lowering his voice at the next sentence. "The time will come but not here, not now. Far more urgent things have to be done." The young warrior put down his blade but didn't resheathe it.  
  
Seto Kaiba's gaze swept through the destruction, to Shadi's bruised condition, to Serenity laying on the ground and finally to rest on Jounouchi. Again Jou felt that strange feeling, like ice piercing through his body, as that cold gaze stayed on him.  
  
With Otogi and his men under swords of Seto's men, Kaiba slowly inspected the damage to Oaken Arvin.  
  
"It would seem Otogi," Seto said, his tone first superior and then cynical, "there is much need of me here. It is obvious that Saxons are very dangerous. An helpless monk, an old woman and a young boy."  
  
Young boy? Jou thought in anger. I'm seventeen, and by the looks of it, he can be no more then eighteen or nineteen.  
  
Kaiba's gaze went again to Jou and he felt the same sensation that the brunette was somehow touching him. Then Seto bent down to one of Shadi's manuscripts, picked it up and turned the torn pages unexpectedly gently.  
  
"Maybe the monk threw a book at you? This one perhaps." With surprising gentleness, he set the book on a table that had somehow managed not to be destroyed. Jou frowned at this. This man was quite different then any other he had seen or met before.  
  
"Perhaps, this young girl over powered you and sent you fearing for your lives." He went on to suggest, turning to Serenity.  
  
Then, turning back to Shadi, he glared down at him. "Look at me old man." How quickly he converted to the Saxon language startled Jou.  
  
"Ti mene nestrasis." (4) Shadi snarled, refusing to obey as he stared down at the dirt floor.  
  
Jou heard the hatred in his voice and knew that Kaiba had heard it too. Because hatred crosses all barriers of language. His breath caught when he heard the ancient Celtic curses Shadi muttered.  
  
Be silent my dear guardian! He thought pleadingly as he glanced at the knight. Shadi would pay dearly if Seto so much as guessed the curses that where being hurled at him. Jou doubted that his bones could endure too much more.  
  
Kaiba took off his glove and crouched down in front of Shadi. Jou was certain that his guardian was in deep trouble. So it surprised both him and Shadi when the brunette took the man's chin and lightly made him look into his eyes.  
  
Shadi put his hands over his face and moved his fingers slowly, as if blocking himself from the Norman and muttered things over and over in Celtic.  
  
Only Jou knew the curses the man was calling upon. All the evil creatures, diseases and some things that even he didn't understand.  
  
The blonde was stunned when Seto didn't even strike his guardian. Instead he just removed his hand from the place on his chin and stood up.  
  
"Don't think to hex me old fool. I don't believe in such things." He said in a cold voice, his face expressionless.  
  
"You will believe," Shadi promised him. "When your eyes fall out of their sockets." Seto ignored him and turned to Serenity, who was sitting on the floor, holding her head in one hand. The redhead whimpered slightly and tears fell onto her cheeks. Jou was ready to go to her side but she glanced at him quickly and he understood with that simple gesture.  
  
Don't move.  
  
"I won't hurt you." Seto told her with surprising gentleness that startled everyone in the room.  
  
"Though god knows you have enough reason to fear me." He told her in Latin, not realizing that only his men (and Jou) understood him. "And even more reason to doubt what I say."  
  
Serenity looked at the ground, avoiding his eyes. Jou watched him with curiosity and wonder. He seemed to actually care about his little sister. Then he finally said in English.  
  
"Look at me." Eventually, Serenity did. The bruises that appeared on her from the beating she had received from Otogi on her face. Anger flashed through Seto's eyes.  
  
"What have you done to her? Release her at once!" He ordered the solider who guarded her. The man was obviously terrified of him and let Serenity go. She automatically ran to Jou, who hugged her tightly.  
  
"If it were left to you Otogi, you would kill all the Saxons including the healer!"  
  
Jou's gaze fastened on Otogi. Until then, he thought that the black haired solider wanted him to heal someone. What could Kaiba possibly mean by that accusation? Why would Otogi want him dead?  
  
As if he had heard his thoughts, Seto turned to him. His ice-blue eyes fastened on the blonde in a far different way. His gaze came to the small cut that Otogi had inflicted.  
  
"My apologies sir. The king would have been offended if he knew you where treated in such a way." Jou's eyes narrowed slightly and Serenity moved to stand beside him. Jou straitened proudly, and spoke in Latin, his words filled with loathing and hatred.  
  
"You surely speak of King Bakura," He said defiantly. "And you are right. He wouldn't tolerate his loyal subjects abused this way, nor would he tolerate foreran tyrants on English soil."  
  
Seto was mildly surprised to find out that this beautiful boy could speak Latin as well as he could.  
  
"I speak of Yami of Normandy," Seto informed him. "Your new king."  
  
"Yami is not my king," Jou said, straitening even more. "Saxon England will never bow down to him. The road to the throne is a long and dangerous one." He spoke, denying all that he knew, that England was already lost to the Normans. And that there was nothing he could do to change it. But he wouldn't bow to this knight that had destroyed his people.  
  
"Yes the road is a long and dangerous one," Seto agreed coolly. "But I assure you. Yami *will* be king."  
  
Something glittered on the floor that caught Seto's eye. He bent down and picked up the gleaming object. Jou held his breath when he saw the gardening knife that Seto held.  
  
He twirled it in his hand, the same one that had so easily drawn blood from Otogi and then comforted a young girl. Again, Jou found himself wondering about this man who had two sides.  
  
The brunette ran his finger over the blade and Jou frowned when he put the finger in his mouth. Seto looked at him.  
  
"Oil of rosemary," he commented, watching for the younger boys reaction. When there was none, he continued. "I have been told it is most effective against fever.and often found among a healers medications."  
  
Jou's stunned gaze met his ice one and the blonde shivered as the vision of the black jaguar, with blood red eyes came back to him.  
  
A creature born in fire and blood.  
  
The words echoed off the walls but Jou was the only one who seemed to hear them. Seto brought his hand up and saw the weariness in the honey eyes and the tension in the blonde's body, as if he was bracing for a blow. Instead, he walked up to him and brushed back some of the flaxen hair that hid his eyes.  
  
He felt great warmth in the boy's skin and a golden fire burned with in his eyes. Seto had the urge to pull back his hand, lest he be burned, but at the same time he wanted to touch more of him.  
  
The contact was brief though, as Jou pulled away. The fear and anger in the blonde's heart was like a raging storm and he wanted to hit the brunette. How dare he touch him without his permission?! And yet.there was a part of him that wanted the boy to keep his hand where it was.  
  
"I am the healer you seek." Jou said, telling Kaiba what he had already guessed.  
  
Jounouchi tried to sense the soldier's emotions but he couldn't. It was like a big stone wall was blocking the brunette's thoughts and feelings from him. That wasn't something everyone could do.  
  
Seto turned the blade around, holding out the handle to him. Jou looked at him suspiciously, not being able to tell what the boy was thinking in giving him back the knife.  
  
"Don't think of using it against me," he warned. "You don't need to fear me. I need you out of here safe and unharmed." Then he turned to his men and with a voice that held all his urgency, he told them, "Far too much time has been wasted already." His gaze turned to Otogi, who was still in the same place, with Kaiba's guards surrounding him.  
  
"Make ready to leave at once. Gather your herbs and medicines, for time is of the essence if Yami is to live." Jou stared at him in surprise. So this is what he was needed for?  
  
"I will never heal the Norman butcher who has caused all of my people so much pain!" he said, the anger replacing his surprise.  
  
Seto turned to him slowly and Jou thought of him exactly like the jaguar in his vision. Kaiba's eyes narrowed at him dangerously, his gaze like a thousand icicles piercing into his soul.  
  
"You will puerulus (5)," he assured and then added. "Or all of Naigai will pay the price. The choice is yours."  
  
Seto saw the hatred burn in those honey eyes. He knew the blonde was trapped, with no choice but to come with them, for he knew the boy cared about the villagers too much to let anything happen to them.  
  
The agony of the choice was plain for all to see, the helplessness and heartache in his eyes. Jou glanced at Serenity and Shadi, and they knew that his decision was made. But Jou didn't want to give this Norman bastard the pleasure of knowing he had gotten to him.  
  
Instead, he turned around and started up the stairs to the herbal. With a nod, Seto sent Malik Ishtar to follow him.  
  
The warrior with the curved knife politely introduced himself-Malik Ishtar- to Jou. Jou's earlier thoughts where right, Malik was Egyptian. But how he came to work for Yami, he'd never understand.  
  
"Does Seto Kaiba send you to guard me and make sure I don't escape?" Jou asked in his own language, certain that the purple-eyed warrior wouldn't understand. But Malik did. He smiled.  
  
"Let me help you with those," He told Jou in the same language, stunning the boy into silence. He put his hand on his shoulder and Jou sensed compassion in his touch. "So nothing may be forgotten." Jou nodded slowly.  
  
When Malik saw that Jou was leaving portions of herbs in the bowl and looked at him questioningly.  
  
"The villagers will need some while I'm gone." He explained and was surprised and grateful when Malik just nodded. They got everything Jou needed and left the herbal.  
  
*****  
  
Jou saw Kaiba's entire army mounted and waiting for him, while Otogi's were far away from them. He noticed Otogi's eyes narrow at him and he wondered about the brunette's words. Had Otogi come to kill him?  
  
Farewells were hastily said, there was no time for more. Shadi gently laid his hand against Jou's cheek. "God goes with you my child. He will return you to our care." He dared to say no more, for Seto was watching them impatiently. But Serenity paid no attention to them.  
  
"Have you got the crystal Jouno?" she asked hastily.  
  
"Yes," he told her, holding the jade crystal tightly in his hand. The power of it swept over him and he welcomed it.  
  
"Be strong mio fratello. (6)" Serenity whispered to her brother, hugging him tightly. "Remember they cannot harm you. You must escape at the first chance you get." Jou shook his head.  
  
"No Sere, I can't! I can't risk the lives of innocent people like that." With one final hug, he left towards Seto. Shadi and Serenity followed him. Tears started flowing down Serenity's cheeks as she watched her brother leave. Jou's own eyes filled with tears as he walked by Kaiba's horse, looking longingly at his little sister and his guardian, knowing very well that he might never see them again.  
  
Suddenly, Jou saw someone he wished he hadn't.  
  
"Desiray!" He cried, running over to a wounded man who was lying on the ground. Jou knew him to be a shepherd and a dear friend to Serenity and he.  
  
He was bleeding from the side of his head where a long gash had been made. He moaned in pain every time he moved it seemed.  
  
"Soldiers," he whispered in delirium, his word thick with the pain he must feel. "You must escape." He told Jou.  
  
"Yes 'Iray. Do not speak now." The blonde told him, stroking his long blue hair lightly. Desiray opened his silver eyes slightly, but closed them again, moaning with pain. Anger filled Jou's soul.  
  
Norman bastards, he thought bitterly. They'll pay for this.  
  
Rain started to fall heavily, quickly soaking them all.  
  
"Leave him." Kaiba commanded, his cold gaze directed to Jou. He turned to face Seto, his eyes burning with anger.  
  
"He is badly injured," Jou said, struggling to keep his voice calm. "I need to close the wound." Then he added his voice full of the hatred he felt towards the brunette; "Surely even you understand that."  
  
Seto's eyes narrowed and his lips thinned. Jou shuddered as he thought the boy looked like Lucifer himself.  
  
"I understand very well puerulus," He informed him. "Leave him where he is or you can be sure of his death."  
  
"You wouldn't kill an injured man!" Jou protested.  
  
Seto drew his sword with a loud clank. "The choice is yours." He said.  
  
Their gazes locked. Yes, he thought bitterly, just like the choice between the well being of his people or their death was also his.  
  
"Forgive me Desiray," he muttered, stroking his face with a gentle hand. "Serenity will take good care of you."  
  
The silver-eyed boy opened his eyes slightly and took Jou's hand in his. "I will find you," he promised in a whisper. "And they will pay for what they've done with their blood." The boy groaned and he closed his eyes again. He had lost consciousness.  
  
Jou's heart ached with pain, for they where childhood friends and he hated that 'Iray had to go through so much pain.  
  
He eased his grip as he saw Serenity rushing over to them.  
  
"Now, if you please," Seto said impatiently. He experienced slight self- loathing at what these people had suffered, but there was a more urgent place the healer needed to be.  
  
Serenity heard the anger and impatience in the Norman's voice and whispered to Jou, "Go now Jouno, I will tend to his wounds. Remember what I have said."  
  
Jou stood slowly and looked at Seto, his eyes full of anger at this horrible man who had destroyed his life. He felt the pocket where the knife Kaiba had given back to him was. What a mistake he made.  
  
"Hate me if you will puerulus," Seto told him. "But we must be going." He reached down, his arm encircling his waist and pulled Jou infront of himself on the same horse. Jou's legs dangled on either side and he looked mournfully back to Oaken Arvin.  
  
He might never return again, for this was part of the future he couldn't see and his eyes filled with tears for those he loved.  
  
Cries were heard in the air and Jou lifted his gaze skywards. High overhead, his small eagle soared on the winds of the gathering storm, calling mournfully as it followed them to the unknown future.  
  
/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~ /~/~/~/~  
  
(1): A fool, duh! ^__^ I love my job.  
  
(2): And I think it always will be. ^_~  
  
(3): Woah, a little gruesome there ne? O_O  
  
(4): It means 'You don't scare me' in Croatian. I thought that since it's not a popular language, Shadi would like to use it so Seto doesn't know what he's saying.  
  
(5): It means 'little boy' or 'young *slave*' in Latin. Seto will use this word ALLOT. Trust me. ^_~  
  
(6): It means 'my brother' in Italian. Serenity will probably call her brother this more often too.  
  
Mid-S: Okay, 10 pages and I'm tired out! O_O I'll try to get Otogi to suffer a little more and I hope that everyone liked that chapie. ^_^ R&R onegai? Arigato! 


	4. Burns and Campfires

Mid-S: Peace out my faithful reviewers! ^__^ I have a new chapter here just for you! Sorry it took so long but now I only have a half an hour on the computer each day. T_T Not nearly enough. Here's some review answers!  
  
JADE.J: Well, we're just gonna have to see won't we? Thanks for reviewing! *gives her a Seto plushie*  
  
ESCACHICK: You tell him Chel-Chan! This chapter is all for you babe! ^_~ *glomps her and gives her a 'get out of school free' card* For all your escaping needs! ^_^ lol.  
  
HIDDEN LIGHT: Wow, what a sweet review! ^O^ Thanks so much for saying that hun! You're so nice. *gives her a box of candy* Enjoy!  
  
LADY GUENA: Thanks for the review!  
  
SILVER DRAGON SOVEREGIN I: You're welcome. ^_^ Thanks for the review darlin'! *gives her a $50 Candy Store gift certificate*  
  
RU-CHAN: Ah, another sweet reviewer. *hands her Bakura* Have fun you two! ^_~  
  
RANMA HIGURASHI: Thanks for the review darlin'! *glomps her*  
  
LILDEVILDRAGON: Glad you like it! Thanks for the review!  
  
QUEEN OF ETERNAL DARKNESS: Thanks for always reviewing my stories hun! *hugs her*  
  
THIS WHOLE CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO *ESCACHICK*! HAVE A WONDERFUL WEDDING HUN AND I HOPE ALASTOR TREATS YOU LIKE YOU DESERVE! Because if he doesn't. *grins evilly* I know allot of girls who won't hesitate to hurt him. But I'm sure he's a great guy if you picked him so best of luck to you both! I know this isn't much of a gift Chel-Chel, but I hope you like it anyway.  
  
XOXO!  
  
/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~ /~/~/~/~  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
If you find a four-leaf clover, (1)  
  
It will bring happiness;  
  
But  
  
Don't tell anyone  
  
Where it's white flower Blooms.  
  
Or how many leaf-lets from its stem extend.  
  
The four-leafed clover.  
  
I only want your happiness, knowing  
  
I can never be yours to share it...  
  
I want happiness  
  
I seek happiness  
  
To cause your happiness  
  
To be your happiness  
  
So take me  
  
Someplace far away  
  
To a true Elsewhere  
  
Please take me there  
  
Magic that lasts  
  
Never-ending kiss  
  
Revere without break  
  
Un-perishable bliss  
  
Take me  
  
I want happiness...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The rain that had been falling when they left Naigai had turned even harder. It stung at Jou's eyes and skin. The riders became little more then dark, huddled shapes in the gloom as water soaked through layers of heavy chain mail armor and thick leather underpadding. The horses' heads hung low with misery.  
  
They where forced to slow their pace as the old road became treacherous underfoot, the horses slipping dangerously in the thick brown mud.  
  
Seto Kaiba's captive sat before him, his chin up high and spine rigged, trying to sit as far away from him as possible in something more then stubborn Saxon defiance. The blonde was not what he had expected to find at the tower.  
  
He knew that healers where usually wrinkled old crones or stout peasant midwives who had acquired some knowledge of the healing ways.  
  
But the boy who sat before Seto was neither.  
  
Beneath his worn garments he was strong and slim. In spite of the bruises he had suffered from Otogi, his skin was pale and smooth like the finest silk. His hair was like the sun, golden and bright. Seto found himself wanting to feel it through his fingers again. And finally, his eyes.  
  
The beautiful orbs that he had found himself staring into, getting lost in. He remembered how angry they had been when the blonde fought with him, and then reflected the sadness of leaving behind those he loved. Now they where fixed ahead, cool and calm, but alert. His eyes were so honest and pure, showing every emotion, unlike Seto's own. They were both so different from each other.  
  
The boy was a surprising combination of vulnerability and strength, innocence and beguiling beauty, like a fine, rare flame that drew a hand to it's fiery heat. How had such a stunning creature wound up in that tower? Seto wondered.  
  
Jou's thin clothing had become soaked and lay plastered against his skin. To add to his misery, the leather saddle had become slippery and he was practically sliding off his seat. He shivered from the cold. Suddenly, he felt Seto's hand wrap around his waist, holding him steady.  
  
He wasn't used to having another person touch him like that, so he tried to pull away. But the grip held him in place.  
  
"Be still," Seto told him, still not letting go, "or you'll unseat us both. I have no desire to end up in the mud." Jou quit squirming but didn't stop shivering.  
  
"You are cold."  
  
"I've been cold before," Jou informed him, trying to make distance between them. Seto settled him more firmly against himself, the weight of his chain mail-clad arm intimate possession that made the blonde go still in the saddle. A wild new fear had settled and grew inside Jou at this sudden closeness. It made him feel trapped and vulnerable in ways he'd never experienced before.  
  
He longed to fight his way away from the brunette, longed not to feel their body heat and these strange feelings inside him.  
  
Seto discovered there were dangers far more hazardous then finding himself suddenly unseated from his horse. Danger in the slim figure before him.  
  
Desire knifed through him and he curse softly. He couldn't remember feeling this way since he had seen a maid (2) when he was fourteen. But this was very different. He had never had feelings for someone who was his enemy and didn't want him anywhere near.  
  
He'd had lovers before, but only if they where willing and asked nothing of him but a few coins. He preferred the battlefield, for only there might he conquer the demons that raged as strong as physical pleasure.  
  
Still, this simple Saxon healer, with eyes like honey and hair like spun gold, had made him feel what all those others had not.  
  
Were it not for those layers of chain mail and leather, his reaction to her would have made itself known. He put a mantle over the blonde, for the boy still shuddered from the cold.  
  
"It's not necessary to share your mantle with me, milord," he said, spitting out the word milord like it was poison. He pushed at the cloak around himself.  
  
"You are wet and cold," Seto answered gruffly, refusing still to loosen his grip around the blonde's waist.  
  
"I have been wet and cold before," he persisted, uncomfortable at the closeness between them. "I do not mind it."  
  
"Lo mente esso (3)." Seto told him.  
  
His breath tingled at Jou's ear and down the side of his neck, causing him to shiver with a far different sensation. What was wrong with him?  
  
"And if you persist puerulus," Seto warned, his voice still harsh, "then I shall have you bound and trussed before me," he assured the blonde. "And you will be wrapped in this mantle. The choice is yours."  
  
Jou didn't struggled again, but there was no surrender in his tense body.  
  
As the hours passed, Seto felt him sway as fatigue overcame him. The blonde stiffened and stubbornly held himself rigid in the saddle before him. Eventually exhaustion won out. His chin dropped. Jou eased himself against the brunette and did not pull away. Night began to fall and even their slow pace became impossible in the darkness that closed around them. At the edge of a forest, Seto ordered his men to make camp for the night.  
  
His Saxon captive jerked awake with that sudden alarm that is a mixture of bone-aching weariness and uncertainty of one's surroundings. Kaiba had experienced it many times in the aftermath of battle in countless lands.  
  
Jou's hands clutched at his arm. Seto's arms wrapped around him protectively and he allowed himself to smell the soft hair he had before. He jerked himself away quickly after realizing what he was doing.  
  
Jou had suddenly become stiff again, most likely from what Seto had just done. He pushed away from him, his eyes wary and bright in the fading light.  
  
"What is this place?" he asked.  
  
"We'll make camp here for the night and continue in the morning."  
  
Seto removed the mantle from the blonde and dismounted. Relieved of his weight the large war-horse stood trembling, its glossy black coat caked with mud, sweat and lather. Steam rose from the animal's back, misting the night air. Long powerful legs that had borne two riders over many miles quivered, the large head sagging with exhaustion.  
  
Jou shivered at the sudden loss of Kaiba's heat. His back ached and his legs cramped from sitting in the saddle for so many hours. He slipped to the ground and would have sprawled in the mud had Seto not caught him.  
  
He pulled the blonde against him supporting his weight on his arm as the feeling slowly returned to the boy's legs. Jou quickly pushed away from him.  
  
No squire appeared to relieve Seto of his armor or tend his horse. Instead, he unsaddled the stallion himself.  
  
He glanced toward the forest.  
  
"If we are to eat and keep from freezing tonight, we will need wood for a fire."  
  
Jou looked at him with more then a little surprise. He had fully expected to be bound. It intrigued him that the brunette did not intend it.  
  
"Aren't you afraid that I might escape?" he asked in amazement.  
  
"You're afoot and it's a very long walk back to the abbey," he pointed out. "You don't seem *that* foolish."  
  
"I might choose to hide out in the woods," he suggested tartly. "You would not know, then, which way I had gone."  
  
"Yes, but eventually you would be found. However, I could not guarantee that it would be my men who would find you first."  
  
That intriguing combination of vulnerability and strength, which Seto had seen at the abbey, flashed in the blonde's eyes. His chin came up.  
  
"I am not afraid of Otogi."  
  
"No, but the villagers of Naigai have reason to fear him and it is the first place Otogi will send his men if you should disappear." Kaiba assured him, "If you are found, he will burn the village. If you are not found, he will *still* burn the village." (4)  
  
"Otogi is like an animal," he warned, continuing. "And like an animal, he is best at hunting. When not hunting he should be chained, but his master rarely keeps him chained."  
  
More death and destruction, thought Jou shivering. This time it wasn't from the cold, but from the memory of his vision in the stone. Of a creature born in fire and blood that would sweep across the land, and a growing sense that he was being drawn toward something he could not yet understand, nor prevent.  
  
"I will not try to escape," He said softly but the anger was clearly in his voice, as he turned towards the trees. "You have my promise."  
  
"Do not go far." Seto warned.  
  
Jou found no answers in the solitude of the forest, only a vague awareness that slipped across his senses, like the warning whisper of the wind as it moved through the trees.  
  
When he returned, he discovered that Seto had made their camp near the horses. His mantle was laid across the trunk of a massive fallen oak. An area had been cleared away in front of the tree trunk. Rolls of thick furs lay at the edge of the clearing.  
  
The campfires of his men rimmed the clearing. Otogi's men made their camp under the canopy of trees. They laid fires, striking metal against stone while others went into the woods to hunt.  
  
Jou layered dray leaves and pieces of bark with small twigs that she found in the shelter of the fallen oak. Heat spiraled in smoky circles on the chill night air. Then a small flame burst to life.  
  
It fed hungrily at the pieces of bark and twigs, quickly consuming them. He added more pieces, building the fire until it flared and danced about think logs that would burn long into the night.  
  
Seized by a sudden chill, he extended his hands towards the fire. But not even the heat could drive away the cold ache that settled low inside him as he sensed danger.  
  
Jou stood abruptly and whirled around, knowing whom he would find. So quietly had Otogi come upon him and he hadn't heard him, but instead sensed his presence.  
  
Surprise leapt into Otogi's dark eyes, no doubt losing the advantage of surprise. Firelight played across his broad, flat features. Otogi had removed the cumbersome battle armor, his compact barreled body moving easily as he crossed the clearing to the fire as though to warm himself. He had thought to take the boy by surprise, but that hope was now gone.  
  
"You are indeed skilled Adonis (5). You have a warm fire while others still struggle to strike the first spark."  
  
His watchful eyes gleamed in the flat planes of his face, reminding Jou of a weasel. He remembered Seto's warning.  
  
"It requires on great skill," he answered carefully. "I was fortunate to find dry wood." Saying that, he put more wood on the fire.  
  
Otogi crouched before the fire with an agile movement. A blade gleamed in his hand - one that had not been there before. He probed the tip of it into the embers that had begun to form at the fire.  
  
He turned to look up at Jou, his lips pulling back into an evil smirk. He passed a hand over the slash that Seto had made back at Oaken Arvin. But Jou's gaze was fixed on the blade in Otogi's hand. He was playing with him, much like the way an animal plays with its prey before striking.  
  
Jou sensed his dangerous mood and thoughts, as clearly as if he had told the blonde and he also sensed the humiliation that seethed within him, like a festering wound. Jou had disgraced him before his men and then slashed him with the knife. It mattered little that he had been protecting those he loved. Otogi had come for revenge.  
  
"He leaves you unbound and unguarded. Seto Kaiba is a fool."  
  
The raven-haired man sprang at him like an animal; a blunt hand seizing his hair as the blade came up in the other.  
  
"This blade is hot. It will burn as well as cut." His hand twisted in Jou's hair, pulling him closer until it was impossible for the blonde to move.  
  
"Before I am through with you Adonis, you will cry mercy." His breath made Katsuya's skin crawl as if he'd been touched by something foul. Bile rose in his throat. Pain throbbed where his hand knotted in his hair, but he refused to cry out. Like an animal, he knew the fear would only make Otogi bolder.  
  
"I will tame you," he vowed as he brought the blade up beside his face. "And then I will force that stubborn Saxon pride from you as you lie beneath me."  
  
"Never."  
  
Seto heard the painful yelp, like that of a wounded animal and swore an oath as he crossed the camp. He shouldn't have left the blonde alone.  
  
In the light of the campfire, he saw Otogi at the clearing, standing a few feet away from the healer, who lay sprawled on the ground. Firelight gleamed from the blade of a knife that lay on the ground between them.  
  
Seto's hand closed over the handle of the short blade at his belt as he reached the clearing. Several of his men and Otogi's followed close behind, their hands at their weapons. His hand went still at his own blade as he realized it was not the healer who had cried out.  
  
Otogi screamed an agony of pain as he clutched one hand in the other. The flesh of one had been reddened with raised welts as if he had laid it to the fire.  
  
"The Saxon whore attacked me!" He swung around for all to see. "Look at what he's done." And then on a snarl, "He burned me! I'll have the bastards head on a pike!"  
  
"Cease Otogi!" Kaiba ordered.  
  
"I will have justice for this," Otogi sputtered. "Either that or he will be subject to Yami's wrath for attacking on of his knights!"  
  
"I see two people before me," Seto said, his gaze traveling from Otogi to where Jou knelt in the dirt before the fire.  
  
"You doubt what I say?" Otogi demanded.  
  
"I do not doubt that you have suffered some injury," Seto told him, "but I will also hear the cause of it from the boy."  
  
Jou slowly lifted his head and gazed at the circle of Norman knights that had gathered. On the faces of Otogi's men she saw an animal lust for blood. Seto's men seemed less certain. He saw Malik watching him with an unsettling intensity.  
  
Norman justice, he thought. Is it the same justice with which Yami had seized the crown of England?  
  
"He burned himself with a blade at the fire," he answered, telling simple truth.  
  
"He speaks lies!" Otogi accused. "He burned me with a stick! He has it in his hand."  
  
Seto extended his hand to Jou. The blonde placed his empty hand in his.  
  
"Your other hand as well puerulus." Kaiba said in a firm tone.  
  
Jou looked up at him with honey-eyes. If Seto thought to discover either malice or deception there, he saw neither.  
  
"You do not believe me."  
  
"I do not disbelieve you."  
  
An angry fire leapt into Jou's eyes. He extended his other hand and opened it.  
  
A vibrant strength coursed beneath the warm satiny skin, pulsing strong and sure at the slender curve of his wrist. That same hand had calmed Seto's war-horse and brought ease of suffering to the sick and wounded of Naigai. He could almost feel energy, like that of the sun, in the flesh, muscle and bone cradled in the blonde's hand. With something very near reluctance he released her hand.  
  
He turned to Otogi. "There is no weapon."  
  
Fury twisted in the features as Otogi stalked past him to his own men.  
  
"The boy attacked me," he insisted, knowing they would believe whatever he told them. "He has hidden the weapon to keep blame from himself. The Saxon is dangerous and should be punished." His men muttered agreement; they seemed to be of a similar mind. ((Mid-S: Great, just what we need. -_-))  
  
***  
  
"Perhaps this is the weapon you speak of," Malik suggested as he rose from where he had crouched before the fire. He held a knife in his hand. He gave it to Seto.  
  
Seto turned it over in his hands, a distinctive blade with a boar's head handle. "I believe this belongs to you, Otogi," he suggested holding the weapon out to him.  
  
Otogi's gaze narrowed as he stared at the blade. "It must have fallen when he attacked me."  
  
As he reached for the knife to take it back, Kaiba seized him by the arm. With a powerful grip, he dug his fingers in between tendon and muscle at Otogi's wrist.  
  
"You claimed she burned you with a stick from the fire."  
  
"I have said it is so! It is there for anyone to see." Otogi flung back at him. He swore an oath and struggled, but could not free himself.  
  
What was there for all to see in the light from the campfire was the long, slender, burn make like a brand across Otogi's palm, much as he would hold a blade, and identical in shape to the blade he claimed to have lost.  
  
"Anyone can see," Seto growled, shoving Otogi away from him. To Otogi's men, he suggested, "Return to your campfires. The night will be long and cold."  
  
They slowly turned and retreated, until only Otogi remained. With a barely controlled violence, he resheathed the knife at his belt, then turned and stalked away, slipping into the darkness beyond the ring of the campfire. He reappeared briefly near the campfire of one of his men. Something was said, the blade flashed in the firelight. Otogi was like a wounded hound that turned on the pack. Then the blade was resheathed and he disappeared from camp.  
  
As he watched him, Jou was seized again by the foreboding of something that lay in the future, something that seemed to have followed them from Naigai, but which he could not see, because it lay shrouded in darkness like a pervasive, malevolent force. He shivered as if taken with a sudden chill in spite of the warmth of the fire. It was Malik Ishtar who spoke Jou's thoughts aloud as if he had read them.  
  
"It will end in blood."  
  
"If he so chooses," Seto answered as he too watched Otogi.  
  
The saw no more of Otogi that night, but it made Jou feel no easier. He knew he was out there, like the darkness, waiting just beyond the edge of the campfire.  
  
Malik had hunted and brought back from the forest two partridges, which were roasting over the fire. Across the clearing other cook fires burned, the aroma of cooking meat mingling with thick wood smoke. At others, men murmured amongst themselves as they sat bundled in thick furs against the freezing cold that hovered at the edges of the campfires and already frosted the ground in between.  
  
Jou hadn't realized how hungry he was, his stomach grumbling noisily as the violet-eyed warrior nimbly carved a wing and leg portion from the roast partridge and handed it to him. Jou shivered again at the precise, slicing strokes as he imagined that other curved blade in his hands.  
  
Each movement was perfectly executed with no waste, accomplishing precisely what he chose, which was to sever limbs from carcass. Jou imagined that skillful blade in battle and wondered with another shudder how many Saxons this exotic, intriguing warrior might have killed.  
  
Still, he felt no fear of Malik. Quite the contrary. He sensed the here was someone he could trust - someone very much like himself. Although he was not a captive as he was, Malik was not Norman. Seto's men accepted him. Otogi's men did not.  
  
After they had eaten, Seto laid several more pieces of wood on the fire, then retrieved several rolled furs from the edge of the clearing.  
  
"It's late and we leave first light." He untied a thick roll of fur, spreading it on the ground. "You will sleep here." He told Jou.  
  
Malik sheathed his blade and sprang nimbly to his feet. He laid out his fur at the other side of the fire, between them and the rest of the encampment. He drew a thick mantle over him, his hand resting on the handle of the blade.  
  
Across the camp, conversations died as the other knights made their pallets before the fires.  
  
Jou huddled before the fire. "I cannot take your blanket," he told Seto, his chin lifting slightly as he stood even closer to the fire.  
  
Kaiba looked up from the broadsword that he carefully drew from its leather sheath. Like the others, he had removed his armor, leaving on only the undertunic and breeches. He laid the broadsword on the fur as Malik Ishtar had, and beside it the smaller blade as well.  
  
"It was not my intention that you should puerulus," he said matter-of- factly. "We will share it."  
  
Jou's startled gaze met his across the clearing that suddenly seemed to narrow to the width of the heavy fur that lay between them.  
  
"We cannot," he protested with sudden alarm. "There is barely enough room for one. I'm quite used to the cold anyway."  
  
"*I'm* not used to the cold puerulus," he said bluntly, giving the distinct impression that the matter had ended. He retrieved his mantle from the fallen oak and approached the fire.  
  
"The night is long and will grow much colder. If my men have no objection to sharing their warmth with one another, surely you cannot."  
  
Jou glanced to where Malik was, seemingly already asleep.  
  
"He is a very restless sleeper," Seto commented. "It can be dangerous to sleep too close."  
  
Then Jou glanced at his sword.  
  
"I'm not a restless sleeper," he assured him, the added as if to convince the blonde, "You are fully clothed and I'm not given to ravishing boys as they sleep."  
  
With the bitter cold already seeping around the edges of his clothes, Jou reluctantly accepted the fact that if they were to survive the night, it must be together. He slowly approached the fur pallet, taking only a narrow space at the edge for himself and leaving the larger portion for Seto.  
  
He did not immediately join him, but instead spread the mantle over him. Then, Jou heard the rhythmic sound of a stone being drawn repeatedly across metal as he sharpened the blade of the broadsword.  
  
The brunette seemed to be giving him time to adjust to their unusual sleeping arrangements, or perhaps lingering as if he too, was waiting for something. But what?  
  
Was it possible that he expected Otogi to return during the night? By the blade beneath the violet-eyed warrior's hand, it seemed more then one anticipated it.  
  
He felt no alarm at the possibility, only an acceptance of what he knew to be true. It would come. Otogi would strike again, for such was the nature of animals. But it would not be tonight.  
  
The fire warmed across his face, the heavy mantle and thick fur warmed the rest of him. His eyes grew heavy.  
  
Exhaustion ached through him, creeping into his bones with a sort of liquid feeling. Then there was only the darkness of sleep.  
  
Much later, Seto joined him at the fur pallet, drawing the mantle over both of them. The blonde lay on his side, knees drawn up. He shivered slightly at the sudden intrusion of cold air, but didn't waken. Instead, he curled more tightly within himself.  
  
The fur was meant for only one person and Seto had no intention of waking in the morning with frostbitten hands, feet or back. And he was certain the closeness of the blonde's body on the pallet couldn't be any more disconcerting then sitting with him in the saddle.  
  
Exhaustion and sleep had eased the rigid tension from his slender body. He lay pliant and completely relaxed in the deep fur, one slender hand pillowing his cheek, the other falling over the edge of the fur.  
  
Seto reached to tuck his hand beneath the thick mantle. His hand was icy cold as he put it under the warm mantle.  
  
That's when he discovered precisely what was worse then sitting astride a saddle with the boys body nestled against his mail-clad chest - his lips way too close for comfort.  
  
"Aw crap!" he swore softly. It was going to be a very long night.  
  
/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~ /~/~/~/~  
  
(1): This is a piece of a poem from the anime 'Clover'. It's only a little bit of it, so I'll be adding the next part of it in the next chapter!  
  
(2): He doesn't mean a maid, maid he means a maid like a girl.  
  
(3): It means 'I mind it' in Italian. I just love this language! ^_^  
  
(4): Hm, nice guy isn't he? -_-  
  
(5): Adonis means 'a beautiful young man, beloved of Venus (the goddess)'. Otogi is using this mockingly, just to mess with Jou's mind.  
  
Mid-S: Oooh, it's getting hot in here! ^O^ Hope you all liked it! R&R please! Oh, could you all tell me what you think of the poem so far in your reviews? Thanks so much! Love you all and I'll get the next chapter out soon! 


	5. The Conqueror

Mid-S: Hey people! You have no idea how long and painful this chapter was to write. T_T But because I love all of you so much, I decided to write it anyway. And now, to the reviews!  
  
IRON MOUSY: *blush* Aw, how nice of you to say that. ^_^ No they're not real places, but I'm glad that the story made you think they where. *glomps her and gives her chocolate* Thankies for the review! ^__^  
  
UNICA: Thanks for adding me to favourite stories. ^_^ How do I know so much? Well, I did study all these languages, so yeah. Thanks for the review! You're so sweet. ^_~ *gives her a Seto Kaiba plushie*  
  
RU-CHAN: You've noticed the gender thing too huh? I have no idea how or why he keeps changing to she. Maybe it's Fanfiction.net? Anywho, Bakura, be nice to Ru-Chan! She's a great person! *nod-nod*  
  
ESCACHICK: Hey hun! ^_^ I always love your reviews, they're so encouraging. *glomps her* Here you go! *gives her Jou and white roses* Have fun you two! I hope Alastor isn't too jealous about this date. ^_~  
  
CAT IN THE WEB: Thanks for saying that! *squeals in delight* Hope you like this chapter too!  
  
SILVER DRAGON SOVEREIGHN I: Hey, I'm really glad you like the story! ^_^ Thanks for reviewing darlin'!  
  
HIDDEN LIGHT: Thanks for the review sweetie! Yeah, the wrong gender thing must be some kind of mess-up with Fanfiction.net. Oh well. Thanks for reviewing! ^__^  
  
HUSH PUPPIE: Yeah, you tell him H-Chan! *twaps Otogi too* Anywho, it's okay that you didn't review for the last chapter. I understand. ^_^ I still wuv you! *glomps her* Hope you enjoy this chapter!  
  
Thanks to everyone else who reviewed also! I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!! And now, the fic!  
  
/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~ /~/~/~/~/~/~/~  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Birds sing  
  
Song of unknown tongue  
  
Though winged, they  
  
Still fail to reach the sky  
  
A place not to be treaded alone  
  
So take me  
  
To a true Elsewhere  
  
Wet feathers,  
  
Locked fingers,  
  
Melting flesh,  
  
Fusing minds  
  
Take me  
  
I want happiness  
  
Not your past  
  
But your present is what I seek,  
  
Carefully winding back its fragile thread  
  
Please take me there  
  
I want happiness  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The slopes of the hills surrounding the valley were covered by dense forest. They rode through stands of alder and red oak, leaves stained brilliant red in the setting sun and drifting to the ground.  
  
As the slope flattened and fanned out into the valley, they passed a mournful caravan of creaking carts. A lifeless arm had fallen trough the slats of one. The sleeve wrapped about that out-thrust arm was that of a plain, coarse woolen tunic of a style commonly worn by Saxon thanes (1).  
  
Jou shuddered as an icy hand moved deep inside him. All the horrors he had foreseen and dreaded had come to pass, for the carts carried the bodies of Bakura's dead soldiers. Mounted behind him in the saddle, Seto was stoically silent.  
  
A distance apart, hunched figures lined the ridge of a low ravine. They were darkly ominous shapes in the fading light, in appearance greatly resembling those harbingers of death-black crows.  
  
As they rode closer, Jou saw them bend and straiten, bend and straiten in a kind of macabre dance as they threw spadefuls of earth into the ravine.  
  
At the bottom were grotesquely twisted shapes - the bodies of mounted soldiers and their horses - some still astride, bodies trapped beneath the crushing weight of their fallen mounts.  
  
They were piled on top of one another as if some giant hand had swept them into the ravine. Horrified, Jou realized they had fallen to their deaths in a downhill charge towards Bakura's army.  
  
"They are Norman," Seto said, his voice low and seemingly devoid of any emotion.  
  
Jou's foreknowledge of Bakura's defeat at Hastings had brought with it an overwhelming sense of loss for the countless Saxons who had died there. But those grotesquely twisted bodies reminded him that Norman soldiers - a great many of them - had died here as well.  
  
As a healer he'd seen death among the families at Naigai. From disease or an accident. An old woman whose time was at an end, or an infant whose time had come too soon and could not live. But nothing in his life or his gift of foreknowledge had prepared him for what he saw now.  
  
Instinctively, he wanted to hide from the death and destruction he saw. But he knew he couldn't. His gift of inner sight would not allow it as his senses filled with an awareness of the battle now past.  
  
Though he tried to block them out, they still came, that prescience of vision of things past and future, that was both gift and curse.  
  
What Shadi had told him since childhood was never truer. The power of sight that he'd been born with and his mother before him:  
  
"Your special gift can bring great joy as well as great sorrow," Shadi had explained. "You must be strong enough to accept both or it will destroy you."  
  
"If I see sad things, then I do not want it." Katsuya remembered telling him. Shadi had smiled at him tenderly, laying a hand tenderly against his cheek. His voice was filled with his own sadness.  
  
"The choice is not yours to make, brevis quendam. (2) It was made long ago, by one far older and wiser then you or me. He knew you would be strong enough. You will find the strength within yourself to bear it."  
  
As Shadi had said would happen, in time Jou had found the strength to bear the sadness along with the joy that his visions brought. But bearing it had not made the gift easier to accept.  
  
Now, even though he tried to push away the ghastly images, he saw again the terrible battle that had taken place here.  
  
A cold knot formed low inside him and expanded until he shivered violently at the horror that unfolded before him-of two armies plunging headlong toward each other; the cold clash of steel blade against war ax and the painful screams and agonized cries of the dying; the dust that rose to engulf them; the overwhelming emotions of confusion, fear, hopelessness; and, in the aftermath, the bodies of both Saxon and Norman dead lying on the cold hard ground.  
  
Hot tears slipped down his frozen cheeks as he stared out across the valley and saw the distant fires glowing eerily through the gloom of the mist and smoke.  
  
Larger bonfires were scattered some distance apart. As the carts rumbled along toward them, he realized they were not bonfires but funeral pyres.  
  
A creature born in fire and blood...  
  
The crest Seto Kaiba carried on his shield was the image Jou had seen in his vision. He had no understanding of it then. But now he understood.  
  
They rode on in painful silence. But Jou was aware that the gazes of the soldiers and knights who rode with them were also fixed on those distant fires.  
  
They finally stopped before one of several large tents in the heart of the Norman encampment.  
  
Seto dismounted, pulling Jou to the ground beside him. Several armed soldiers immediately appeared, making Katsuya aware this was an armed encampment.  
  
"Bring your medicines," Seto commanded.  
  
He strode ahead to draw aside the tent flap. Another armed soldier just inside the tent immediately appeared. A guard? The man glanced at Seto, recognized him and stepped aside. Malik Ishtar had dismounted his horse and walked beside Jou. Otogi had not followed them into camp, but had departed with his men as soon as they entered the valley. He was nowhere to be seen. And that worried Jounouchi.  
  
Ryou Bakura and several of Seto's knights walked behind them, like an armed escort. Uneasiness slipped down the blonde's spine.  
  
Beware my child.  
  
The warning slipped across his senses as Jou untied the leather bundle from the saddle.  
  
The bitter cold wind gusted inside the open flap as they entered the tent, stirring a fire in a brazier and guttering flames at several lamps. As the flap fell once more back into place, cutting off the intrusion of wind, the flames settled and glowed steadily once more.  
  
There were several mail-clad, well-armed knights inside the tent. They ringed a raised cot, partially blocked from view by the phalanx of sword and armor.  
  
"Milord." One of the young knights with tri-colored hair stepped forward and greeted Ryou Bakura. Jou saw the nod of acknowledgement that passed between the two young men and immediately sensed a bond of deep friendship.  
  
They were of a near age, about 16, as were several others of the knights in the tent, except for one who was somewhat older then Kaiba. In this man, he sensed the wisdom and counsel of many years, many battles fought and deep, abiding loyalty. He sensed other things, but they were fleeting images.  
  
Most of what he sensed was a great urgency-that same urgency had grown in him throughout the day as they rode closer to Hastings. And he knew it was for Yami of Normandy.  
  
"Are we in time, Mai?" Seto asked a blonde girl who was near the cot.  
  
The one called Mai nodded, her face taut. "He is alive," she said with solemn voice.  
  
But hardly more, Jou sensed, in the woman's unspoken thoughts.  
  
Seto glanced about at the heavily armed knights. His eyes narrowed as his gaze fastened on someone who stood behind one of the knights at the head of the cot.  
  
"What is she doing here?" His voice was as cold as the steel of a blade. The knight moved aside, revealing another woman in the light of the oil lamps.  
  
"Milord Kaiba," she greeted Seto with a silky voice.  
  
The black-haired girl stepped forward, her manner aloof. She spoke in French and her kirtle was of the finest heavy satin. Jou had seen little of the encampment, but he hadn't seen any woman except for these two. It seemed odd now to find a blonde one who actually seemed to care about the situation and was dressed in a simple kirtle, and another who was dressed so finely in a military camp and acted as if she were royalty. Maybe the black-haired woman was the wife of the man that lay on the cot.  
  
"I gave orders that one other then my men, Mai and the healer are to be allowed in here." Seto snapped.  
  
"I am not yours to command," the woman reminded him as she stepped closer to the cot. "You have no authority over me. He asked for me. My place is with him."  
  
Jou sensed the spasm of tension that moved through the tent. From the woman he sensed many things-the coldness of ambition, the heart of anger and passion and the traces of sensual, almost erotic memory that reached out to Seto Kaiba. Jou knew that in spite of the anger that seemed to leap between them, they had once been lovers. (Mid-S: FORGIVE ME FOR WRITING THAT!!! *cowers in fright of the angry readers* But it's for plot construction. Don't worry, she'll get what's coming to her. *grins evilly*) And Jou felt something almost like jealousy go through him, cutting him deeply like a knife. Why should he care about Kaiba? It was none of his business to who the man slept with.though he could have done better then *her*.  
  
"It seems odd, milady, that one so grievously wounded and unconscious would have the strength to summon you," Seto responded coldly. He glanced to Mai, and Jou saw the woman's subtle shake of head, silently disavowing what the woman claimed.  
  
"Remove her," Seto ordered. (3)  
  
"You may not have me removed," she cried out. "My place is at his side!"  
  
Seto turned with a deliberate slowness and again Jou was reminded of that earlier impression of a dangerous creature. His features were hard, forbidding; he was certain that icy gaze was capable of freezing one where they stood. For all her boldness the Norman lady indeed seemed wisely frozen where she stood.  
  
"The only woman who may claim that privilege is his *wife*," he said in a quiet voice completely at odds with the scathing look he gave her. Then with a jerk of his head he signaled Ryou to have her removed.  
  
"Take your hands off of me," she cried as Ryou turned to escort her from the tent. She wrenched her arm free of his grasp, wrapping her cloak about her as if it were the finest battle armor. She turned on Seto, her voice dripping with haughty disdain.  
  
"I will leave, milord Kaiba. But I shall return when *he* asks it."  
  
"He will not ask it," Seto assured her.  
  
When she had gone, he turned to Mai. "Tell me everything that has happened."  
  
"Nothing is amiss," the young woman assured him. "Now that you have returned."  
  
Jou heard the qualification of her reply, but more, he sensed the girl's unspoken thoughts of some trouble that she chose for the time being to keep to herself. Seto sensed it as well. He nodded.  
  
"We will speak of it later. There are more crucial matters here." He stripped away mail-covered gloves. The knights parted as he stepped to the cot.  
  
"Christ's blood!" he said softly, but with a ferocity that turned Jou cold with apprehension, as Seto gazed down at the man who lay on the cot. Jou heard the undercurrent of emotion at his voice-anger laced with incredulity.  
  
"How is it possible that he is even still alive?"  
  
The man Jou glimpsed briefly as Seto knelt beside the cot lay wasted and emaciated, his skin a gray, bloodless color above bloodstained leather garments. Over the mournful howl of the wind that sent the loose edges of the tent flapping he heard the ragged breathing that was too rapid and too shallow. By Seto Kaiba's urgency, this wasted man could be no other then Yami of Normandy.  
  
"Not Christ's blood," Mai informed him, her lips thinned with contempt, "but more of his own." She gestured to the stained blanket that lay beneath the injured man.  
  
"Yesterday night," she explained, "I found the bishop and that butcher of a healer's apprentice bleeding him."  
  
"Damn those bastards!" Seto cursed. "He has already lost enough blood for two men." He stood abruptly and called an order back through his men,  
  
"Bring the boy."  
  
Almost as one, the knights and soldiers filling the tent turned and stood apart. They were dressed in their bloodied and mud-caked battle armor, swords unsheathed and held at rest in their gloved hands. They toward over the blonde, their gazes by turn speculative, doubtful and fierce.  
  
This was what his people had confronted. No matter how bravely they fought with their clubs, axes and sticks, they were no match for these well armed, professional soldiers whose sold purpose was war and death. With an ache of sadness so intense that it stilled his breath in his lungs, he knew the fates of the men of Naigai-indeed all of Saxon England-had been sealed before they ever met the Norman Army on the battlefield.  
  
His vision had seen all and he had been powerless to stop it.  
  
Jou realized Seto had against summoned him. He glanced up at the collective countenance of those fierce warriors turned toward him and experienced something of the emotion that Bakura's beleaguered Saxons had surely felt- raw, naked fear.  
  
As he slowly walked toward the cot, he had a prescience of time moving out of itself, of events unfolding that he was being drawn into but could not yet see, much less prevent.  
  
"I have a name," Jou said softly, yet firmly. Ice blue eyes glittered dangerously as Seto stared back at him; yet his voice was carefully restrained.  
  
"Jounouchi Katsuya," he acknowledged. "Your skills are greatly needed by the one who lies here gravely wounded."  
  
Jou approached the cot, through that gauntlet of fierce, heavily armed knights.  
  
"I will do what I can. The rest is up to God."  
  
"God has already done his part." Seto's tone was filled with unmistakable contempt, with no attempt to disguise what would seem to be blasphemy. And Jou wondered what might account for such coldness of heart in a man who had shown such compassion at Oaken Arvin.  
  
"The rest is up to you and you will not fail."  
  
Jou knelt by the cot and looked with pity upon the man who lay there, shrunken by fever and loss of blood. He seemed a skeleton already except for the pale skin that clung to his bones.  
  
"Hold the lamp close," he told Seto. "I have to see what must be done."  
  
There was another who stepped to the opposite side of the cot, the young knight Ryou Bakura. As Jou reached to draw back the side front of leather tunic that covered the injured man's chest, Ryou's hand closed over his wrist.  
  
"If he dies," he warned, "I will personally see that your life is forfeit for his."  
  
Through the contact of his hand clamped painfully about Jou's wrist, he sensed his own much deeper pain and the fierce, warring emotions that reflected in the taut, rigid expression at his face. The blonde sensed a deep, silent anger, an aching need for some long-denied friendship and the conflicting emotion of intense hatred, as if they fought each other within him.  
  
He felt his inner pain with such an intensity and fierceness that Jou's heart ached.  
  
"Let the boy help him, my young friend," Seto said beside Jou, his own hand lying gently, but with a firm restraint, on the younger man's shoulder. Still, Ryou Bakura didn't release him. Instead his fingers tightened about Jou's wrist.  
  
Jou silently communicated to him with his thoughts, allowing him to feel his compassion and concern. The blonde felt his resistance, fighting him, pushing his thoughts back from his own. Ryou was a fierce warrior, but in his heart he sensed the greater fierceness of his friendship for the man who lay between them. Tears started to trickle down Ryou's cheeks, all the pain coming out from deep within his soul.  
  
Trust me, Jou spoke silently to Ryou, willing him to feel the truth of his thoughts. I will not let him die. Jou sensed his emotional struggle as he tried to understand the thoughts that moved through his, as if someone had spoken. Eventually, he felt those fingers loosen about his wrist and, though they only left red marks at his skin, Jou felt no physical pain, only his deeper emotional pain. Finally, Ryou nodded and stepped back from the cot, but remained close enough, his hand at his broadsword as a silent warning. A few stray tears still slipped down his cheeks, but that was all.  
  
Jou slowly rounded the cot, in turn lifting crudely made bandages that had been pressed against the wounds to stanch the flow of blood.  
  
In most places the bleeding had stopped, leaving the bandages glued to the wound with the dried blood. At others, the wounds still seeped. The blonde wet them with water from a basin, gently easing them away from the torn flesh, examining wounds that were obvious to the eye. Though there were several, including a deep one at his side, none by itself threatened his life.  
  
When he moved down the length of cot at the opposite side, Ryou impatiently blocked him, his expression challenging.  
  
"Enough of this!" he growled. "He lies here dying while you take your time as if you were at a market. Get on with it!" (4)  
  
"It is not yet enough," Jou told him gently but with authority of voice few would have dared. "I must know exactly how badly his is wounded if I am to help him." Behind him, he sensed movement.  
  
"His skills are great," Seto told the young knight. "Allow him to do what must be done."  
  
Jou looked over at him in surprise that he should speak so highly of him. What did Kaiba know of him except from rumors among Saxon peasants?  
  
There was a moment of silent challenge between the two men. Then Ryou stepped once more out of Jou's way though he remained close.  
  
The blonde moved past him, concentrating on the wounded man who lay before him, fingers moving along muscle, sinew and bone, seeing with that inner eye the wounds that were not obvious-two broken ribs and several bruises.  
  
In good health Yami was no doubt a powerfully built man. (5) The bones were heavy and solid. Though sunken from fever and loss of blood, his features where extremely familiar to Jou. Tri-colored hair.where had he seen the same colors before? Then he thought back to the small boy who had greeted Ryou. Interesting.  
  
Jou lifted the blanket that covered the lower half of Yami's body.and he saw something he wished he hadn't.  
  
Though Yami's leg was laid out strait, the long lower leg bone was shattered, fragments piercing through the flesh. Like the others, a crude bandage had been placed over the wound. But little else had been done and maggots now crawled inside the torn flesh.  
  
Jou shudder, feeling horribly nauseous. His hand trembled at the bandage with a mixture of horror and anger that he had been cared for so badly.  
  
Seto Kaiba's hand closed over his with surprising gentleness. The warm strength in those fingers flowed through the contact of skin on skin, stunning the blonde.  
  
"Do what must be done." "He is dangerously close to death," Jou said softly. "The loss of so much blood." He did not say the rest for it was dangerous to speak out against the others.  
  
The fingers tightened over his wrist. "What can I do to help you?"  
  
"I must have more light and it must be warmer in here. He has a fever that may just as easily take him as the wounds. All drafts must be sealed. Then I will need more blankets, hot water, fresh bandages and a very sharp knife."  
  
The brunette hesitated at the last request, then nodded as he turned and gave orders for the bottom edges of the tent sides to be buried and the opening sealed off.  
  
More braziers and fuel were summoned, along with another basin of hot water set to simmering, heavy furs and clean bandages. Seto handed him his own blade, which Jou laid across the coals that glowed at the bottom of a brazier.  
  
Yami's tunic, breeches and boots were removed, the furs laid over the upper part of his body and his uninjured leg.  
  
Jou sprinkled crushed leaves over the simmering basin. A bittersweet fragrance spiraled steamily in the air. Three more braziers appeared, their fires stocked high to give more light and more warmth.  
  
Outside the tent Jou heard the sound of blades striking the earth as trenches were dug and the edges of the tent buried all around to seal out drafts of air and seal in the heat. A thick carpet on the earthen floor was rolled and carried outside where it was hung over the entrance.  
  
He set two more small bowls on the braziers. Water was added to one and soon simmered. A white powder was added to the other and the mixture turned golden brown on the heat. He removed Seto's blade from the coals.  
  
"The flesh decays," he explained. "In order for these wounds to heal, the dead flesh must be removed. He sleeps now because of the fever, but may still feel the pain. There is a potion I can give for the pain, but it wears off very quickly. It must be saved for his leg."  
  
Kaiba nodded as he moved to stand at Yami's head prepared to hold him down if necessary. One of his knights moved to stand at each side. This was something all warriors understood.  
  
At Seto's nod he worked quickly, deftly removing the putrefied flesh from wounds that had festered, all the while silently cursing the fool who had ordered that Yami be bled as a means of saving his life.  
  
Bloody barbarians! He thought. Have they no common sense about the way of wounds?  
  
It was an agonizingly slow and painful process. Each wound needed to be cleaned of debris and filth, the decayed flesh removed. Then he spread each with a salve mixed from one of the bowls and bandaged then with clean linen. He was bound about the waist with lengths of linen to aid the broken ribs in healing.  
  
Excruciating pain roused Yami from the stupor of fever. Weak as he was, he would have been too strong for the blonde and it would have been impossible to continue had Seto and his men not held him down.  
  
Cold sweat sheened across his body and poured off him. His skin took on an even deadlier pallor, his eyes glazed with pain, fever and delirium.  
  
Jou worked quickly. Three times he called for more water to clean the wounds. His back and arms ached. The heat in the tent added to his tension. Perspiration beaded across his forehead, dampening tendrils of hair that he wiped back with a bloodied hand. When he sagged with exhaustion, he felt Seto Kaiba's unspoken support in the touch of a hand.  
  
Finally, he straightened, pressing a hand into the small of his back where a dull ache had set in from bending over the cot. The smaller wounds had all been cleaned and bandaged. The worst he had saved for last-the badly maimed and shattered leg. Into a tankard, he poured a portion of the sweet- smelling brew that had been simmering over a brazier.  
  
"He is very weak, but the leg must be mended. He must drink as much of this as possible or he will never survive the pain." (6)  
  
He saw the uneasiness that passed from one man to the other. They understood the need for bandaging wounds. But drinking unknown potions was another matter. All too well, he understood their concern. The war to conquer England-everything depended on the man who lay on the cot. He must live. And Jou was a Saxon healer who had every reason to hate him and wish him dead.  
  
"If I wanted to do him harm," he said logically, "would I have gone to so much trouble first?"  
  
Malik reached out and seized the tankard. "I will drink from it first," he declared.  
  
Jou saw the look that passed between him and Ryou. If the potion were poisoned, Malik would fall from it and he would be put to death. All waited for Jou to stop him.  
  
He didn't, but instead nodded. "You will experience a very pleasant feeling of warmth. Eventually you will not be able to move your arms of legs. The potion blocks out feeling; therefore, it also blocks out the pain."  
  
Malik nodded and took several swallows of the faintly sweet liquid.  
  
After a moment, he leaned unsteadily against the cot, but his expression was no less fierce then before, his grasp of words or thought no less clear.  
  
"Do what must be done."  
  
It was a slow, painstaking process, but finally, with Seto's help, Jou poured the contents past Yami's pale, slack lips and persuaded him to swallow.  
  
From their previous reaction to the pain potion, the blonde sensed the answer for what he must now ask, but it was necessary. He set the tankard aside and turned to Seto Kaiba.  
  
"For what must be done next, you must trust me. I must be alone with him."  
  
Mai's reaction was immediate as she stepped in front of Jou, blocking him from Yami.  
  
"What treachery is this?" She demanded. "Do you think you have gained our trust by the test of your potion?"  
  
Jou was startled by the girl's sudden outburst. He sensed her thoughts and realized how long she had known Yami, and how much she obviously cared about him. It was wonderful that she did, but he couldn't afford this, not with Yami dying slowly with each passing second.  
  
"No matter his skills, he is still Saxon," she argued. "The bodies of the Norman dead lie in yonder graves. You cannot allow what he asks. I do not trust him. What is it that must be done that we cannot see?"  
  
Jou saw the contemplation that settled in Seto Kaiba's cool gray gaze and heard the sounds of other weapons being drawn from their sheaths.  
  
Imploringly, Jou cast his thoughts out to the brunette as he had with Ryou Bakura, desperate to make him understand, to bend his will to his own. But he discovered he could not. Seto was not like the others who might be persuaded by his thoughts.  
  
"Please," he begged. "He is dying. It's a small thing I ask." Somehow he had to make him understand, for no one, not even Serenity, had seen what he must do. Jou appealed to the brunette's honor as a knight sworn by an oath to the very man who lay so gravely injured.  
  
"The healing ways are ancient and known to only a few," he went on to explain. "They have been entrusted to me with a sacred vow. Surely you understand that I cannot break a covenant of trust." he laid his hand on Seto's imploringly. "You must not ask it of me."  
  
As a healer, Jou had touched people hundreds of times. Physical contact soothed and gentled. But he gasped at the intensity of touching Seto Kaiba. As Jou put his hand on top of the brunette's, he felt a strange, raw, sensual power. Kaiba's hand closed over his. As if with a will of its own, his hand opened to the sensual heat of Seto's touch, unleashing sensations that were stunning and terrifying.  
  
****  
  
"Can't you see her treachery?" Mai demanded, her features twisted with anger, pain and fear.  
  
"I will not allow him to be alone with Yami!" she turned to Jou. "You will do what must be done, healer. And *none* of us will leave."  
  
Jou was getting annoyed. He could not reach Seto, he thought in despair, but he might be able to reach this young, reckless girl whose *cousin*-whom Jou sensed she both loved and hated-lay dying.  
  
With a lowered voice that only Mai and those standing immediately about her might hear, he told her with the certainty of all her powers, "If you wish your *cousin* to live, you must do as I ask. If you do not, then his death will be on your hands."  
  
Stunned surprise leapt into her eyes that he knew Yami was her cousin, then her questioning gaze turned to Seto.  
  
"I told him nothing," Seto assured her. When she looked back at Jou, Mai's expression was tormented and suspicious.  
  
"What treachery is this, Saxon?" She demanded. "I could strike you down where you stand!" She whispered fiercely.  
  
"Yes," Jou said calmly, "and then he will surely die. The choice is yours." He saw that his words where not lost on Kaiba, for the brunette had given him much the same sort of choice about the people of Naigai.  
  
Finally, Mai sighed defeated. "So be it. But if he dies," she added, her eyes flashing dangerously, "you will quickly follow."  
  
As a warrior, Seto had experienced many wounds and relied on the dubious talents of healers, many of them butchers who learned their trade flaying fowl or butchering pigs.  
  
A few among them, in the Eastern Empire, were healers of rare skill, whose knowledge and ability was very near miraculous. This young man's skills were not merely that of mixing powders and potions. He understood the body's healing ways and skillful surgical techniques that rivaled those of the ancient Egyptians.  
  
"I brought the healer," Seto said for all to hear, his decision made. "The responsibility for what passes here rests with me." (7)  
  
His decision made, he announced, "Two of us will remain. The rest will leave." He nodded to Malik.  
  
"Surely puerulus," he said to the blonde, "you understand a vow of honor cannot be broken."  
  
Jou felt helplessness wash over him. He could not persuade this fierce Norman warrior to leave. There was no choice and there was no more time, for even now he felt Yami's life ebb.  
  
"Alright." Jou reluctantly agreed. He could not prevent his staying, but perhaps he could prevent his remembering.  
  
The expressions on Ryou and Mai's faces was filled with a turbulence of emotions. They did not want to leave, but they have given their word.  
  
"We will wait outside with the rest of your men." Ryou told Seto. His gave rested briefly on Jou, then he and the others turned and left the tent. The heavy tapestry whispered into place after them.  
  
Jou moved back to the cot, trying to sort through his own emotions. Malik stood at the other side, his hand resting lightly on the handle of his blade. Seto stood beside him.  
  
This was going to take a while.  
  
/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~/~ /~/~/~/~/~/~/~  
  
(1): A thane is 'a man ranking above an ordinary freeman and below a nobleman'.  
  
(2): Latin for 'small one'  
  
(3): Go Seto-kun! You put that bitch in her place! ^_^  
  
(4): Okay, so Ryou's a little angry.^^; But it is the Medieval times people and soldier's need some backbone.  
  
(5): Yami? Powerfully built? Oo; What was *I* high on? lol.  
  
(6): That's encouraging. -_-;  
  
(7): Anyone sense a little love except for moi? ^_~  
  
Mid-S: Okies people.I can't type anymore. Too sick. X_X *coughs*  
  
The reason why I put Isis as Seto's lover was because if I used Tea, it would have made me puke. This couple makes me puke anyway, but like I said, it's for 'plot construction'.  
  
YMS: In other words, she's too stupid and sick to think of anything better.  
  
Mid-S: Yami, shut...shut...*passes out* X_X  
  
YMS: -_- R&R please. 


End file.
